Midnight Comforts
by CCCCinnamonLips
Summary: Desmond and Claire both find themselves in need in the hotel after rescue.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Midnight Comfort  
**Chapter:** 1/?  
**Fandom:** LOST  
**Pairing:** Desmond and Claire  
**Word Count:** 707  
**Rating:** G  
**Summary:** Desmond and Claire  
**Author's Notes:** No spoilers, unless I've unearthed some master plan for future episodes, but I doubt it. ;-)

The hallway was empty and almost silent. A clock somewhere ticked loudly through the cold, midnight air. Desmond walked the short distance to the vending area at the end of the hall on the balls of his feet, careful not to make enough noise to wake anyone.

Oceanic had put a good portion of the survivors up in the hotel until they could sort out where they needed to go. Some, like him, were simply waiting for connecting flights home. Others, like Claire, weren't as lucky. He heard her telling Sun on the rescue boat that she had little family to return to.

Desmond reached the vending machines and stopped to assess the selection. If nothing appealed, there was a bar on the ground floor practically calling his name. He couldn't sleep, and a few drinks might have been just what he needed. He had decided to try a snack before returning to his old habits.

Deep in concentration over the fare of the machine, he didn't notice when Claire, holding Aaron, entered the small niche the machines were in. He jumped when she brushed against his elbow reaching towards the soda machine.

"Sorry, just…" She gestured towards the dispenser and nodded, a small awkward smile on her pink lips.

"It's quite alright, sistah, you just gave me a start," Desmond smiled widely and stepped back, giving her more room to reach the machine.

"Thanks," she smiled again as she selected a canned ice tea. Desmond returned his gaze to the rows of candy and pretzels. Claire shifted Aaron to one hip, took her can, and watched him for a moment before speaking.

"So, you can't sleep, either?" She must have seen the bags under his eyes or the slight droop in his stance.

"No, but I guess I'm not alone." He smiled at her, "Looks like he's havin' no trouble." Desmond nodded towards the baby, sleeping soundly in his mother's arms.

"No, I guess he's not." Claire looked down at Aaron, and smiled at him, before turning back to Desmond. "I think I'm still in survival mode. If I fall asleep, I feel like he'll be alone and in danger. It's gonna take some getting used to, I guess, having a door that actually shuts, and not running from the others or monsters or polar bears." They both laughed lightly. It sounded like a joke now, all the perils they faced on the far away island. It felt absurd that these dangers had once been their day-to-day lives. But everything they'd seen had left its mark on them. Desmond had been wakened by every noise in his hotel room, sitting straight up in bed, prepared to defend the camp that didn't exist for them anymore.

"You look like you need a good night's rest. Maybe if you weren't alone, you could sleep a bit, and feel better in the morning," Desmond suggested. He looked closer at her, and saw that her normally shimmering hair was flat, and her eyes were just as puffy and red as his must have been.

"Oh, that's alright, I don't want you to go out of your way for me, it's fine, really." She put one hand on his arm, and spoke in a tone that tried to dismiss him on the surface, but something underneath was begging for him to fight her on it.

"Really, it's no trouble. You need the sleep more than I do. I don't have a little one that depends on me," he nodded to the baby again. "I'm fine Claire, let me help you."

Claire searched his face. She saw nothing but sympathy and concern behind his chocolate brown eyes.

"If you really don't mind, it might help." She began the sentence with some hesitation, but something in her was reassuring her as she spoke that it was the right thing to say and that she needed and wanted his help.

"Alright," Desmond gave her a reassuring smile.

"My room's this way," she pointed down the hall, and smiled back at him before starting off towards the room. He followed close behind her left elbow. She could feel him walking behind her, and felt safer. His presence had already begun to put her at ease.


	2. Chapter 2

The two stood awkwardly on either side of the neatly made bed. Aaron was asleep in a brand new plastic crib, another Oceanic-funded purchase. The room was tinted gold from the glow of the bedside lamp.

"I'll just umm…" Desmond motioned roughly behind him to a shady-looking sofa. Both of them laughed lightly more to fill the silence than at anything funny.

"Umm, yea, that umm… should work." Claire realized how little she'd actually thought this through before she'd agreed to it. They both started stiff and jerky motions getting to their chosen places. They looked more like they were miming the actions of getting into the bed and onto the sofa, and doing a poor job of it. Neither made eye contact for a full five minutes until they had both fidgeted in their spots long enough to seem comfortable.

"Well, umm, g'night." Claire's voice was nothing but hesitant and clumsy as she reached to turn out the lamp.

""Night, sista, sleep well." Desmond seemed more comfortable with the situation, but his voice was still more hushed than usual.

With the light off, Claire found herself staring, as she did every night, at Aaron's crib. It was situated in the way of the thin beam of moonlight let in by the crack in the curtains. She felt some safety, watching the rise and fall of her son's chest, but even more when she saw the moonlight also illuminated Desmond. He was shifting his weight on his awkwardly bent legs. The couch really was too short for him, and likely too filthy for anyone, but still he stayed. Claire started at him a moment before her days without sleep made themselves remembered and she fell about as deeply asleep as she ever had.

Desmond watched her lay almost perfectly still, facing his side of the room, and watched as she relaxed and her breathing became steady with sleep.

He wouldn't have guessed that Claire would be one to snore. The rough snort of her exhaling through her nose made him smile as he thought about the small woman sleeping near him.

His eyes were well adjusted to the lack of light, and he could see her curled up on her side, facing him and the baby. He was grateful to be able to help her reach a state peaceful enough to sleep. The night on the island after Charlie had given his life to save them, it seemed as though Claire had lost her safety net, and spent the night in Kate's tent. Desmond didn't know if she'd really slept since before he'd taken Charlie out to face his fate. She was sleeping now and for the first time since he'd rejoined the group with his devastating news, she looked truly calm. She had smiled when the rescue planes came, no one had ever seen her cry, only some one paying very close attention would have seen that something was wrong. One would have to watch her every second to see that her bright blue eyes didn't light up the same or catch the glazed look she got when she thought no one was watching.

Desmond felt terribly responsible for anything that happened to Claire now that Charlie was gone. He felt a surge of guilt everytime he saw her finger Charlie's note in her pocket. His stomach and throat felt full of rocks anytime her cheeks were pailer than usual or her eyes were slightly red.

Now, watching her relaxed and at peace, he felt a weight lifted from his shoulders, knowing he was doing right by his friend. Seeing her feel safe created a feeling of warmth in him, a feeling he hadn't felt since he heard Penny's voice at the undersea hatch, and he too was finally able to sleep.


End file.
